Emergency needle airway

ABSTRACT

A kit comprising a holder and guide for five No. 13 hypodermic needles in order to properly insert the needles in the cricothyroid membrane or in any other of the intertracheal spaces as a first aid measure to guarantee an adequate airway until such time as more definitive measures can be instituted. The device is to be used in situations where the larynx of a person has become blocked due to food lodging therein, or some other similar occurrence, and adequate medical treatment is not immediately available. The guide is so designed that the needles will be placed in the cricothyroid membrane in the proper position to ensure an adequate air supply.

United States Patent Wolf Oct. 15, 1974 [54] EMERGENCY NEEDLE AIRWAY3,476,113 11 H969 Tarsitano l28/35l [76] Inventor: Earl G. Wolf, 1750 N.Palafox St.,

Pensacola, 32501 Primary Examiner-W1ll1am T. Dixson, Jr. Attorney,Agent, or Firm-Herman, Bishoff & Platt [22] F led: Feb. 16, 1973 v [21]NO.Z A kit comprising a holder and guide for five N0. 13 [52] U.S. Cl128/305, l28/347, 128/351, hypodermic needles in order to properlyinsert the 206/223 206/366 needles in the cricothyroid membrane or inany other [5 I] 17/34 Amm 25/00 of the intertracheal spaces as a firstaid measure to AMB 17/24 A6lb 191/02 guarantee an adequate airway untilsuch time as more [58] Fleld 01 Search 206/366, 315, 223; definitivemeasures can be instituted The device i to 128305 329 be used insituations where the larynx of a person has become blocked due to foodlodging therein, or some [5 6] References cued other similar occurrence,and adequate medical treat- UNITED STATES PATENTS ment is notlmmedlately avallablefThe guide is 561115- 510,413 12/1893 Dolge 128/329signed that th needles will be placed in the cricothy- 3,057,347 10/1962McGee 128/351 roid membrane in the proper position to ensure an ad-3,l82,663 5/1965 Abelson.... 128/351 equate air supply 3,306,298 2/1967Raimo 128/35] 3,415,250 12/1968 Peterson 128/351 8 Claims, 6 DrawingFigures PATENTEDUET 1 SW4 7 3.841.334

FIG. 3.

FIG. 4. FIG. 5.

H YEO/D CART/1.465

EMERGENCY NEEDLE AIRWAY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of theInvention This invention relates to emergency tracheostomies and moreparticularly relates to a combination kit, guide and set of needles forperforming an emergency needle tracheostomy.

The Prior Art There has been found to occur, with alarming frequencydeaths due to laryngeal obstruction caused, for example, by foodbecoming lodged in the trachea. Such emergency situations frequencyoccur in restaurants, on boats, on the battle field and in otherlocations where skilled surgical personnel are not readily available.Therefore, it is desirable that a method of obtaining a temporary airwaythat could be used by paramedical personnel and, in some situations,laymen, be available. However, to date, no such system has beensatisfactorily developed.

The instruments developed to date that have been used, require anincision of some form, the most widely advocated being the Sheldentracheotome, set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 2,991,787 to Shelden et 31.Other instruments of this general type are set forth in US. Pat. Nos.

3,511,243 to Toy, 3,5556,l03 to Calhoun, 2,865,374 to Brown et al,3,182,663 to Abelson, and 3,476,l 13 to Tarsitano. All of theseinstruments and devices require some degree of expertise, even in thehands of an otolaryngologist and can cause serious complications such ashemorrhage, tracheo-esophageal fistula, pneumothorax scarring,mediastinal emphysema and tracheal stenosis.

While the needle tracheostomy has been previously investigated, see forexample The Needle Tracheosto'my: Reevaluation, printed in MedicalTimes, December 1968, pages 1218 through 1222, no practical deviceutilizing this technique has been developed.

Accordingly, the object of the present invention is to provide anemergency needle tracheostomy kit which provides an emergency airway ina simple manner, which can be readily available in restaurants,ambulances, boats and the like, which isinexpensive to manufacture,which entails a minimum amount of equipment, and which may be used withrelative safety.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Inthe present invention, the above objects areachieved by providing a kit comprising a holder formed of plastic or thelike having passageways therein designed to suitably receive five No. 13hypodermic needles, modified so as to be substantially open at theirends with a sharpened tip designed to easily penetrate the intratrachealspace through the cricothyroid membrane of a person suffering from acutelaryngeal obstruction. The holder for the needles also serve as a guidein that the passageways therein are angulated toward each other so thatthe needles converge and once properly positioned within the trachea ofthe patient, in effect form a single passageway of sufficient diameterof sustain the patients breathing. In addition, the inner surface of theholder is curved in such a manner so as to conform to the area of thepatients throat just below the arch of the cricoid cartilage, sometimesreferred to as the cricothyroid notch.

I BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational viewof the emergency airway kit of the present invention fully assembled;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the emergency airway kit shown inFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 3--3 in FIG. 1,looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 4 shows a sagittal section through the human neck, illustrating thefirst step in the utilization of the emergency airway kit of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to that in FIG. 4, illustrating the emergencyairway kit of the present invention after it has been inserted in thetrachea of a patient;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view, showing the stiletteseparated from the needle and guide.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawing andin particular FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 6, there is shown the emergency needleairway kit of the present invention generally designated by thereference numeral 10. The kit comprises a holder and guide 14 havingfive passages 16 therein, disposed at approximately an angle of 5 withrespect to each other. Inserted in the two outer passages 16 are needles11, while somewhat shorter needles 12 are disposed within the innerthree passages 16. Needles l1 and 12 have angularly pointed open ends 15and are hollow throughout their length. Disposed within needles l1 and12 are stilettes 13 having similarly pointed ends and designed to snuglyfit within the inner passages of needles 11 and 12. The purpose ofstilettes 13 will become more apparent from a description of theoperation of the invention setforth below with respect to FIGS. 4 and 5.

As can be seen in FIG. 6, needle 1 1, as is equally true of needle 12,comprises a shoulder 11a designed to abut against the upper portion ofguide 14 so as to limit the passage of needle portion 11b therethrough.Passageway extends throughout the entire length of needle 11. Stillette13 includes handle portion and shank 13b having a length and diameterequal to those of passageway 11c.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, guide 14 is formed of a hardplastic material, but could equally well be formed of any other suitablematerial such as metal or the like. Needles 11 and 12 are formed fromNo. 13 hypodermic needles, since it has been discovered that this sizeneedle provides the proper combination of ease of insertion in thepatients trachea and adequate air passageway. Needles 11 areapproximately 2-16 inches in length over-all with needle portion 11bbeing approximately 136 inches in length. Needles 12 are approximately2-5/32 inches long, with the needle portion thereof being approximately1-96 inches in length.

In practice, when it has been determined that a person is suffering froman acute laryngeal obstruction, the kit of the present invention isplaced at the cricothyroid notch, between the thyroid cartrilage and thearch of the cricoid cartilage so that the needles 11 and 12 may passthrough the cricothyroid ligament, as shown in FIG. 4. In this position,needles 11 and 12 are drawn back so that their tips are within theconfines of guide 14 with curved surface 14a resting on the throat ofthe patient so as to guide the needles into the proper position in theintratracheal space. As can be seen in FIG. 4, stilettes 13 are inplace.

The needles and stilettes are then pushed forwardly entering theintratracheal space of the patient, as shown in FIG. 5. Stilettes 13which have insured the smooth passage of the needles are then removedand needles l1 and 12 held firmly in place by guide 14 provide anemergency airway until the patient can be taken to a hospital forfurther treatment.

There has thus been described an emergency needle airway kit whichpermits a needle tracheostomy to be performed in a simple manner, whichcan be made readily available, which is inexpensive and which may beoperated with relative safety. If it were desired that the kit of thepresent invention be utilized by laymen, it could, of course, bepackaged with instructions to guide the user in its proper placement.While it has been found that with the kit of the present invention,respiration can be continued for an indefinite period of time, it is theintent of the present invention to be used only to create an airwayavailability for a period of approximately one hour which, underreasonably normal circumstances, should be a sufficient period of timeto allow a patient to be brought to a medical facility where standardtracheotomy can be performed or other medical treatment instituted toalleviate the laryngeal obstruction.

While a preferred embodiment of the present invention has beendescribed, it should be realized that various modifications may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and overall philosophy of theinvention. Therefore, it is intended that the scope of the invention bedefined only by the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. An emergency airway kit for relieving laryngeal obstruction in humanbeings comprising in combination:

a. guide means including a plurality of passageways therein; and

b. a hollow pointed open-ended needle slidably engaged in each of saidpassageways.

2. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 1, wherein saidpassageways are angularly disposed with respect to each other so thatthe pointed ends of said needles converge.

3. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 2, wherein said guidemeans comprises two substantially fiat sides, said passageways passingbetween and parallel to said flat sides.

4. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 3, wherein said guidemeans further comprises a side transverse to said fiat sides, curved toconform to the cricothyroid notch of the human throat.

5. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 4, wherein said needlesengaged in the end passageways are longer than those in the centerpassageways.

6. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 5, further includingstilette means snugly engaged in each of said hollow needles.

7. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 1, wherein said needlesare No. 13 hypodermic needles.

8. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 6, wherein fivepassageways and five needles are provided and said needles are No. 13hypodermic needles.

1. An emergency airway kit for relieving laryngeal obstruction in humanbeings comprising in combination: a. guide means including a pluralityof passageways therein; and b. a hollow pointed open-ended needleslidably engaged in each of said passageways.
 2. The emergency airwaykit set forth in claim 1, wherein said passageways are angularlydisposed with respect to each other so that the pointed ends of saidneedles converge.
 3. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 2,wherein said guide means comprises two substantially flat sides, saidpassageways passing between and parallel to said flat sides.
 4. Theemergency airway kit set forth in claim 3, wherein said guide meansfurther comprises a side transverse to said flat sides, curved toconform to the cricothyroid notch of the human throat.
 5. The emergencyairway kit set forth in claim 4, wherein said needles engaged in the endpassageways are longer than those in the center passageways.
 6. Theemergency airway kit set forth in claim 5, further including stilettemeans snugly engaged in each of said hollow needles.
 7. The emergencyairway kit set forth in claim 1, wherein said needles are No. 13hypodermic needles.
 8. The emergency airway kit set forth in claim 6,wherein five passageways and five needles are provided and said needlesare No. 13 hypodermic needles.